98 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



and eat the crumbs. I have had young brought to me throughout 

 the hot weather, so I presume they have several litters in the 

 year. Their alarm cry is a sharp twittering sound, very birdlike. 



Gerbillus indicus, Hardw. (Indian Gerbille). — Very common. 

 It makes extensive burrows in open fields and cultivations. The 

 young are born in January and February, generally three to four 

 at a birth. I procured many of this and other species by flooding 

 their burrows with water. I once took nearly half an ordinary 

 sack of wheat from one of their burrows. They run extremely 

 swiftly, very often using only the hind legs and springing like a 

 Kangaroo. 



Vandeleuria oleracea, Benn. (Long-tailed Tree Mouse). — I have 

 never come across this species myself, but Mr. C. M. Inglis says, 

 writing about the Black-throated Weaver bird (P. bengalensis) : 

 " Many eggs are destroyed by the pretty little Longtailed Tree 

 Mouse. I have several times caught it in these birds' nests." 



Mus alexandrinus, Geoff. (Black Rat). — This Rat is common 

 everywhere. 



M. decumanus, Pall. (Brown Rat). — Common, but not, I 

 think, so much as M. alexandrinus. 



M. musculus, Linn. (House Mouse). — Only too common. 



M. buduga, Gray (Indian Field Mouse). — I caught only one 

 specimen of this pretty species at Dalsingh Serai in August, 1901. 

 I found it in an indigo-vat, brought in evidently with the plant. 

 No doubt it is common. 



Nesocia bengalensis, Gray (Mole Rat). — Very common. Its 

 burrows are always well marked by the heaps of earth thrown up 

 round the mouth of them. Above ground it is slow in its move- 

 ments, and one I had under observation attempted to bite savagely 

 when handled. The specimen I had was kept in a very thick 

 wooden box, but it gnawed its way out one night and so escaped. 

 It seemed very sensitive of light and always chose the darkest part 

 of the box. This species, with other rats and mice, forms one of 

 the articles of food of a certain caste of natives known as 

 «' Moosoores." 



Hystrix leucura, Sykes (Indian Porcupine). — Common, but 

 being nocturnal in its habits, they are not very often seen. They 

 make extensive burrows, and in one place I saw a barn that had 

 been completely undermined and the flooring destroyed by these 



